The last dozen years or so have seen the Internet explode from a small network of computers that interested only computer science students to an indispensible tool that nearly everyone uses daily. The Internet has become a vital conduit for information, communication and business. While business that adapted their sales model to the Internet benefited early on, the market has become more competitive in recent years. This has led to an excellent opportunity to make money helping business make sales. That opportunity is known as affiliate marketing.

Affiliate marketing is a system where a company that wishes to sell a product enlists the help of owners of other Websites. These owners can provide links or advertisements to the seller's products, and if a visitor clicks on the ad or link and makes a purchase, the seller shares a portion of the revenue with the advertising site. The system works well for both parties, as the advertising site is devoting little time and space to a money making opportunity and the seller is only paying advertising fees if the product actually sells.

Is it possible to make a living via affiliate marketing? Thousands of individuals claim to do so, and many have established Websites of their own to explain how they did it. For most people, however, affiliate marketing provides a supplementary income. A good example of the latter is the Google Adsense program, which allows Websites to share space which Google fills with advertisements that are related to that site's own content. If a visitor clicks on an advertisement, the owner of the site receives a small payment. The payment may be small, but multiplied by hundreds or thousands, it can add up to significant revenue. Other popular products that make use of affiliate marketing are downloadable electronic books, known as ebooks, or computer software.

For those who are new to affiliate marketing, a bit of research is in order. Two of the largest companies that manage affiliate programs are Clickbank and Commission Junction. A visit to either of their Websites can provide the novice with additional information about how their programs work and how they can be put to use. Both sites offer extensive information about how their programs work and how to make use of them. With a few clicks of the mouse, even someone who is new to affiliate marketing can be well on his or her way to making some extra money.